System, method, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for locating a receipt for a product

ABSTRACT

A system can perform certain acts. The acts can include storing electronic receipts for a user in a database. The acts can further include receiving, from an electronic device of the user, product identification information. The acts can also include searching the electronic receipts to identify two or more of the electronic receipts listing a product referenced by the product identification information. Additionally, the acts can include facilitating a simultaneous display, on the electronic device of the user, of each respective electronic receipt of the two or more of the electronic receipts. The simultaneous display can include an overall view of the respective electronic receipt and an individual item view for the product listed in the respective electronic receipt.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/195,743, filed Jun. 28, 2016, issuing as U.S. Pat. No. 10,417,231.U.S. application Ser. No. 15/195,743 is incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to systems, methods, andnon-transitory computer-readable storage media for locating a receiptfor a product.

BACKGROUND

Sales receipts are often generated by a business or store when acustomer purchases one or more products. The receipt is typically awritten acknowledgement that payment for the product(s) has beenreceived by the business or store.

Many businesses or stores allow the customer to return one or moreproducts for a refund, exchange, and/or store credit. Typically, thecustomer is required to present a copy of the receipt to the business orstore to initiate a return of a product. In some instances, however, thecustomer may have lost, misplaced, or otherwise cannot find the receipt.In other instances, the customer may have a plurality of receipts, buthe/she cannot determine which one of the receipts covers the productthat the customer wants to return. Accordingly, without a properreceipt, the customer may not be able to return the product to thebusiness or store.

The present disclosure is aimed at solving the problems identifiedabove.

SUMMARY

In different embodiments of the present disclosure, systems, methods,and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for locating areceipt for a product are provided.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a system for locating areceipt for a product is provided. The system comprises a servercomputer of a business, a database coupled to the server computer forstoring a customer purchase history including a plurality of electronicreceipts, and a mobile computing device coupled to the server computer.The mobile computing device coupled to the server computer includes amemory for storing an application containing computer-executableinstructions and a processor coupled to the memory for executing thecomputer-executable instructions of the application. The executing ofthe computer-executable instructions causes the processor to receive aninput of product identification information from the product, transmitthe product identification information to the server computer, andobtain an electronic receipt selected from the plurality of electronicreceipts stored in the database with the selected electronic receiptincluding a listing of the product.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for locating areceipt for a product is provided. The method utilizes a mobilecomputing device coupled to a server computer of a business. The mobilecomputing device includes a memory for storing an application and aprocessor for executing the application. The server computer is coupledto a database for storing customer purchase history including aplurality of electronic receipts. While executing the application by theprocessor of the mobile computing device, the method comprises the stepsof: receiving an input of product identification information from theproduct; transmitting the product identification information to theserver computer; and obtaining an electronic receipt selected from theplurality of electronic receipts stored in the database with theselected electronic receipt including a listing of the product.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, one or morenon-transitory computer-readable storage media for locating a receiptfor a product is provided. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable storage media has computer-executable instructionsembodied thereon and, when executed by a processor, causes the processorto: receive an input of product identification information from theproduct; transmit the product identification information to a servercomputer; and obtain an electronic receipt selected from a plurality ofelectronic receipts stored in a database coupled to the server computerwith the selected electronic receipt including a listing of the product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Advantages of the present disclosure will be readily appreciated, as thesame becomes better understood by reference to the following detaileddescription, when considered in connection with the accompanyingdrawings. Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments and examples ofthe present disclosure are described with reference to the followingfigures, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout thevarious views unless otherwise specified.

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustrating an embodiment of a system forlocating a receipt for a product.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a method forlocating a receipt for a product.

FIGS. 3-8 illustrates examples of different screens displayed on amobile computing device that are generated by an application resident onthe mobile computing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. Itwill be apparent, however, to one having ordinary skill in the art thatthe specific detail need not be employed to practice the presentdisclosure. In other instances, well-known materials or methods have notbeen described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the presentdisclosure. Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,”“an embodiment,” “one example,” or “an example” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment of thepresent disclosure. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in oneembodiment,” “in an embodiment,” “in one example,” or “in an example” invarious places throughout this specification are not necessarily allreferring to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particularfeatures, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitablecombinations and/or sub-combinations in one or more embodiments orexamples. In addition, it is appreciated that the figures providedherewith are for explanation purposes to persons ordinarily skilled inthe art and that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

Embodiments and/or examples in accordance with the present disclosuremay be embodied as an apparatus, a method, or a computer programproduct. Accordingly, the present disclosure may take the form of anentirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (includingfirmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.), or an embodimentcombining software and hardware aspects that may all generally bereferred to herein as a “module” or “system”. Furthermore, the presentdisclosure may take the form of a computer program product embodied inany tangible media or expression having computer-usable program codeembodied in the media.

Any combination of one or more computer-usable or computer-readablemedia (or medium) may be utilized. For example, computer-readable mediamay include one or more of a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM) device, a read-only memory (ROM) device, anerasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory) device, aportable compact disc read-only memory (CDROM) device, an opticalstorage device, and a magnetic storage device. Computer program code(e.g., computer-executable instructions) for carrying out operations ofthe present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages.

Embodiments may also be implemented in cloud computing environments. Inthis description and the following claims, “cloud computing” may bedefined as a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demandnetwork access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources(e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that canbe rapidly provisional via virtualization and released with minimalmanagement effort or service provider interaction, and then scaledaccordingly. A cloud model can be composed of various characteristics(e.g., on-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling,rapid elasticity, measured service, etc.), service models (e.g.,Software as a Service (“SaaS”), Platform as a Service (“PaaS”),Infrastructure as a Service (“IaaS”), and deployment models (e.g.,private cloud, community cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud, etc.).

The flowchart and block diagrams(s) in the flow diagram(s) illustratethe architecture, functionality, and operation of possibleimplementations of systems, methods, and computer program productsaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure. In thisregard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent amodule, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or moreexecutable instructions for implementing the specified logicalfunction(s). It will also be noted that each block of the blockdiagram(s) and/or flowchart illustration(s), and combinations of blocksin the block diagram(s) and/or flowchart illustration(s), may beimplemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform thespecified functions or acts, or combinations of special purposehardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts, orcombinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.These computer program instructions may also be stored in acomputer-readable media that can direct a computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such thatthe instructions stored in the computer-readable media product anarticle of manufacture including instruction means which implement thefunction/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

Several (or different) elements discussed below, and/or claimed, aredescribed as being “coupled,” “in communication with,” or “configured tobe in communication with.” This terminology is intended to benon-limiting, and where appropriate, be interpreted to include withoutlimitation, wired and wireless communication using any one or aplurality of suitable protocols, as well as communication methods thatare constantly maintained, are made on a periodic basis, and/or made orinitiated on an as needed basis.

In addition, and for clarity in discussing the various functions of thesystem of the present disclosure, multiple server computers (or justcomputers or servers) are discussed as performing different functions.These different server computers may, however, be implemented indifferent ways such as modules within a single computer, as nodes of acomputer system, etc. The functions performed by the system (or nodes ormodules) may be centralized or distributed in any suitable manner acrossthe system and its components, regardless of the location of specifichardware. Furthermore, specific components of the system may bereferenced using functional terminology in their names. The functionalterminology is used solely for the purposes of naming convention and todistinguish one element from another in the following discussion. Unlessotherwise specified, the name of an element conveys no specificfunctionality to the element or component.

With reference to the figures, and in operation, the present disclosureprovides a system 10, method, and one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable storage media for locating a receipt for a product. Invarious embodiments, the present disclosure describes how a customer canutilize an application resident on his/her mobile computing device tolocate an electronic receipt for a product that the customer would liketo return to a business or store for a refund, exchange, store credit,and/or the like. Upon locating the electronic receipt, the mobilecomputing device utilizes the application to display a copy of theelectronic receipt on the display screen of the mobile computing device.The customer can thereafter present the electronic receipt displayed onthe display screen of the mobile computing device when returning theproduct to the business or store.

Various embodiments described herein include a system. The system caninclude one or more processors and one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media storing computing instructions configured to runthe one or more processors and perform certain acts. The acts caninclude storing electronic receipts for a user in a database. The actscan further include receiving, from an electronic device of the user,product identification information. The acts can also include searchingthe electronic receipts to identify two or more of the electronicreceipts listing a product referenced by the product identificationinformation. Additionally, the acts can include facilitating asimultaneous display, on the electronic device of the user, of eachrespective electronic receipt of the two or more of the electronicreceipts. The simultaneous display can include an overall view of therespective electronic receipt and an individual item view for theproduct listed in the respective electronic receipt.

Many embodiments described herein can include a method. The method caninclude storing electronic receipts for a user in a database. The methodcan further include receiving, from an electronic device of the user,product identification information. The method can also includesearching the electronic receipts to identify two or more of theelectronic receipts listing a product referenced by the productidentification information. Additionally, the method can includefacilitating a simultaneous display, on the electronic device of theuser, of each respective electronic receipt of the two or more of theelectronic receipts. The simultaneous display can also include anoverall view of the respective electronic receipt and an individual itemview for the product listed in the respective electronic receipt.

The present disclosure also describes how a customer can utilize theapplication resident on his/her mobile computing device to locate anelectronic receipt for a product utilizing product identificationinformation taken directly from the product. The product identificationinformation may be displayed on the product and/or on a packaging of theproduct. The product identification may be embedded in a barcodedisplayed on the product and/or on the packaging of the product and/orwritten, printed, or established as alpha and/or numeric characters onthe product or a packaging of the product. The application resident onthe mobile computing device may enable the customer to input the productidentification information, such as by scanning the barcode displayed onthe product or packaging, capturing an image of the barcode displayed onthe product or packaging, or entering the alpha and/or numericcharacters representing the product identification information utilizinga keypad or microphone of the mobile computing device.

The present disclosure also describes how a customer can utilize theapplication resident on his/her mobile computing device to locate areceipt for one of a plurality of products (which may or may not beidentical products) in instances where the customer would like to returnone of the plurality of products. In this embodiment, the applicationcan utilize product identification information taken directly from theproduct to obtain a plurality of receipts, with each receipt including alisting of at least one of the plurality of products. The plurality ofreceipts may be presented on the display screen of mobile computingdevice, and the customer can select one of the receipts presented on thedevice that contains a listing of the particular product that thecustomer would like to return.

Accordingly, the system 10, method, and non-transitory computer-readablestorage media provides an effective and efficient way for the customerto locate and obtain a copy of a receipt for a product so the customercan, for example, successfully return the product to a business orstore.

The term “product” is used to describe any object, item, or article ofmanufacture that the customer has purchased from a business or store.Further, “product identification information” is or includes anyinformation or data that identifies, or can be used to identify theproduct. In an example, product identification information may includean identifier of the product, such as a product name, a numericidentifier or product code, an alphanumeric identifier or product code,a universal product code (UPC), and/or the like. The productidentification information can be displayed directly on the productand/or directly on a packaging of the product. The packaging of theproduct may include a box, bag, wrapping, carton, crate, etc. withinwhich the product is placed/packaged. In addition, the productidentification information may be embedded in a barcode displayeddirectly on the product and/or the packaging of the product and/or maybe written, printed, or established directly on the product and/or thepackaging of the product utilizing alpha, numeric, or alphanumericcharacters.

An example of the system 10 which is usable for locating a receipt for aproduct is shown in FIG. 1. It will be understood that the presentdisclosure, as generally described and illustrated in the figures, couldbe arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations.Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments of thepresent disclosure, as represented in the figures, is not intended tolimit the scope of the present disclosure, as claimed, but is merelyrepresentative of certain examples of presently contemplated embodimentsin accordance with the present disclosure. The presently describedembodiments may be understood by reference to the figures, where likeparts are designated by like numerals throughout.

Referring to the example set forth in FIG. 1, the system 10 includes abusiness, such as a retail business. Examples of retail businessesinclude a clothing business, a shoe business, a grocery business, anaccessory business, an office supply business, a furniture business, atoy/hobby business, a pet supply business, a home remodeling business,and/or like. In some examples, the business is a combination of retailbusinesses, such as a business which sells clothing, shoes, and grocery,a business that sells office supplies and furniture, etc.

In an embodiment, the business is or includes a store, which is aphysical establishment designed for the direct sale of products to acustomer. In another embodiment, the business is or includes a web-basedstore for the sale of products to a customer through the Internet. Inanother embodiment, the business includes a central office (such as aheadquarters) and a plurality of stores designed for the direct sale ofproducts to a customer. In yet another embodiment, the business includesa central office and a plurality of stores for the direct sale ofproducts to a customer, as well as a web-based store for the sale ofproducts over the Internet. In embodiments where the business includes aplurality of stores, the business may include two, three, four . . . ,hundreds, or even thousands of stores. Typically, the stores are locatedin various geographic locations, such as in different cities, indifferent towns, in different counties, on different streets or roads,on the same street but a mile or two away from one another, etc.

As shown, the system 10 further includes a server computer 14 of thebusiness (also referred to as a business server computer) and a database16 (also referred to as a business database) coupled the business servercomputer 14. The business server computer 14 includes a processor and amemory device coupled or connected to the business database 16 toretrieve and store information contained in the business database 16.Typically, the server computer 14 and the database 16 are located at thecentral office of the business. Alternatively, the server computer 14and the database 16 may be located offsite (i.e., not at the centraloffice), but are still considered to be part of the central office ofthe business.

The processor of the business server computer 14 executes variousprograms, and thereby controls components of the server computer 14. Theprocessor may be a single processor or a plurality of processors.Further, the processor may be a controller, a microcontroller, amicroprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or aprocessor working in conjunction with a central processing unit (CPU)performing the function of a general purpose computer. The processor ofthe server computer 14 may be configured to execute computer programscontaining computer-readable and/or executable instructions forperforming a selected process. In embodiments where the server computer14 contains a plurality of processors, the processors can operate inparallel or distributed manner. In an example, the processor of theserver computer 14 may execute various modules of the system 10.

The memory coupled to the processor of the server computer 14 mayinclude a read only memory (ROM) and random access memory (RAM) forstoring the computer-readable and/or executable instructions of thecomputer programs. Further, the memory of the server computer 14 may beconfigured to store programs and information in the database 16, and toretrieve information from the database 16 that may be used by theprocessor of the server computer 14 and/or an application 40 resident ona mobile computing device 22 to perform various steps of the method forlocating a receipt for a product described herein. The memory may alsoinclude, but is not limited to, a hard disc drive, an optical discdrive, and/or a flash memory drive.

The database 16 contains or stores, for example, a customer purchasehistory for each customer. The customer purchase history includes dataor information for customer in-store purchase (i.e., purchases made bythe customer at the business or one or more stores associated with thebusiness) and/or customer online purchases (i.e., purchases made by thecustomer online or through the Internet). The customer purchase historytypically includes a plurality of receipts, with each receipt includinga listing of one or more products that the customer purchased during asingle transaction. In an example, each receipt includes a listing ofeach product purchased, where the listing may include the product nameand the universal product code (UPC) for the product. The receipt mayalso include the quantity of each product purchased, a price for eachproduct purchased, a total transaction price and the dollar amounttendered, how the dollar amount was tendered (e.g., with cash, creditcard, store credit, check or promissory note, and/or the like), wherethe transaction took place, the time and date that the transaction tookplace, etc. In an example, the customer purchase history may furtherinclude an identification of all of the products ever purchased by thecustomer, when each of these products was purchased, how many of each ofthese products were purchased, how much the customer paid for each ofthese products, the products returned by the customer and reasons whythe products were returned, how often the customer purchases theseproducts, etc.

In an embodiment, when a transaction is completed, the server computer14 of the business or the server computer of the store(s) associatedwith the business may create an electronic version of the receipt (i.e.,an electronic receipt or e-receipt) for the transaction. In instanceswhere the electronic receipt is created by the server computer 14 of thebusiness, the server computer 14 may automatically store the electronicreceipt in the customer purchase history in the database 16. Ininstances where the electronic receipt is created by the server computerof a store associated with the business, the server computer of thestore may automatically transmit the electronic receive to the servercomputer 14 of the business which stores the electronic receipt in thecustomer purchase history in the database 16. In some instances, thebusiness or store associated with the business may create a paperreceipt for a customer's transaction. In these instances, the customercan scan the paper receipt utilizing, e.g., a scanning feature of themobile computing device 22. Utilizing a suitable software program orapplication 40 resident on the mobile computing device 22, the customercan upload and store the scanned receipt into his/her customer purchasehistory stored in the database 16.

In an embodiment, the database 16 may further contain or store, forexample, a customer profile. The customer profile may includesidentification information of a customer, such as the customer's name,residential or postal address, phone number, email address, and accountinformation (such as credit card information, billing information,coupons, credits, etc.).

The customer purchase history and the customer profile may be stored inthe same database 16. In another embodiment, the database 16 may includeseveral sub-databases, and the customer purchase history and thecustomer profile may be stored in separate sub-databases. In stillanother embodiment, the database 16 may represent a plurality ofdatabases with the customer purchase history stored in one of thedatabases and the customer profile stored in another one of thedatabases.

As shown in FIG. 1, the business server computer 14 is coupled incommunication to the mobile computing device 22 via a communicationsnetwork 24. The communications network 24 may be any suitableconnection, including the Internet, file transfer protocol (FTP), anIntranet, a local area network (LAN), a virtual private network (VPN),cellular networks, etc. Further, the communications network 24 mayutilize any suitable or combination of technologies including, but notlimited to, wired and wireless connections, always on connections,connections made periodically, and connections made when needed.

The mobile computing device 22 may include any suitable device thatenables the customer to access and communicate with the system 10including sending and/or receiving information to and from the system 10and displaying information retrieved from the system 10 to the customer.Examples of the mobile computing device 22 include, but are not limitedto, a laptop or notebook computer, a tablet computer, asmartphone/tablet computer hybrid, a personal data assistant, a handheldmobile device including a cellular telephone, and/or the like. Themobile computing device 22, as well as any other connected computersystems and their components included in the system 10, can createmessage related data and exchange message related data (e.g., near fieldcommunication (NFC) payloads, Bluetooth packets, Internet Protocol (IP)datagrams, and other higher layer protocols that utilize IP diagrams,such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), Hypertext Transfer Protocol(HTTP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), etc.) over thecommunications network 24.

In an embodiment, the mobile computing device 22 is or includes asmartphone or tablet computer. In another embodiment, the mobilecomputing device 22 includes a processor coupled to a memory, and adatabase for storing various programs and data for use in operating themobile computing device 22. The mobile computing device 22 may alsoinclude a display screen 28, one or more video imaging cameras 30, oneor more speakers, a microphone, at least one input button, and one ormore sensors including, but not limited to, a touch ID fingerprintsensor coupled to the input button, a barometer, a three-axis gyro, anaccelerometer, a proximity sensor, and an ambient light sensor. Thedisplay screen 28 includes any type of device capable of displayinginformation to the customer utilizing the mobile computing device 22. Anexample of a display screen 28 includes a touchscreen display device. Inaddition, the mobile computing device 22 may include a Wi-Fi antenna, acellular network antenna, a Bluetooth communications device, assistedGPS and GLONASS, a digital compass, and an iBeacon microlocation device.

In an embodiment, the mobile computing device 22 further includes a webbrowser stored in the memory. The processor of the mobile computingdevice 22 executes the web browser program to display webpages on thedisplay screen 28 that includes information received from the servercomputer 14 of the business to enable the customer to interact with andoperate various functions associated with the server computer 14. Inaddition, the mobile computing device 22 may be programmed to store andexecute a mobile program application (i.e., an application 40) thatdisplays a user interface 29 on the display screen 28 that allows thecustomer to access the business server computer 14 to retrieve and storeinformation, as well as to interact with the server computer 14 forperforming one or more steps of the method for locating a receipt for aproduct described in detail below.

The system 10 further includes a website host server 26 configured tohost a website (such as a business website) that is accessible by thecustomer via any computing device having access to the Internet, such asthe mobile computing device 22. The website host server 26 retrieves andstores webpages associated with one or more websites in response torequests received from the customer via the mobile computing device 22.The webpage allows the customer to interact with the website and providethe customer with access to his/her customer profile and customerpurchase history stored in the business database 16 by entering anappropriate login and password. In an embodiment, upon accessing thecustomer profile, the customer can enter, change, and/or update customerprofile information such as the customer's name, address, phone number,etc.

Embodiments of a method for locating a receipt for a product aredescribed in detail below. In each of these embodiments, the methodsteps may be performed utilizing an application 40 for locating areceipt for a product. The application 40 is a computer programincluding computer-readable or computer-executable instructions storedin a non-transitory computer-readable medium that can direct a computingdevice (e.g., the mobile computing device 22) or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that theinstructions stored in the computer-readable or -executable mediumproduce an article of manufacture including instruction means whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

In an embodiment, the application 40 may be loaded onto the mobilecomputing device 22 to cause a series of operational steps to beperformed for locating a receipt for a product. Upon enteringappropriate authentication information (such as an appropriate login andpassword), the application 40 performs a series of operational steps forlocating a receipt for a product. For instance, the application 40 canutilize product identification information obtained directly from theproduct, obtain an electronic receipt from the business server computer14 that includes a listing of the product associated with or identifiedby the product identification information, and present the electronicreceipt to the customer on the display screen 28 of the mobile computingdevice 22. The customer can, for example, utilize the electronic receiptto return the product for a refund, exchange, store credit, and/or thelike. In certain embodiments, the application 40 can obtain a pluralityof receipts from the business server computer 14 and present theplurality of receipts on the display screen 28 of the mobile computingdevice 22. In these embodiments, the application 40 further enables thecustomer to search through the receipts and select one of the receiptsincluding a listing of the product that the customer would like toreturn. In addition, the application 40 may also be used, by thecustomer, for uploading paper receipts, view customer purchase history,and update the customer profile.

Referring now to FIG. 2, an embodiment of the method for locating areceipt for a product is described in detail below. The method utilizesthe mobile computing device 22 coupled to the business server computer14 and includes a memory for storing the application 40 and a processorfor executing the application. The server computer 14 is coupled to thedatabase 16 containing customer purchase history including a pluralityof electronic receipts. The method steps set forth in FIG. 2 areperformed by executing the application 40 by the processor of the mobilecomputing device 22 and includes the steps of receiving an input ofproduct identification information from the product (step 200),transmitting the product identification information to the servercomputer 14 of the business (step 202), and obtaining an electronicreceipt from the server computer 14, the electronic receipt beingselected from the plurality of electronic receipts stored in thedatabase 16 (step 204). The selected electronic receipt includes alisting of the product.

Details of embodiments of the method are described below with referenceto FIGS. 3-8. In the embodiments of the method described below, themobile computing device 22 is a smartphone with the application 40loaded or resident on the device 22.

As shown in FIG. 3, the customer can access the application 40 on themobile computing device 22 by locating and selecting (via, e.g., thetouch of the customer's finger) an icon 32 present on the display screen28 of the mobile computing device 22. In some instances, upon selectingthe icon 32, the customer may be required to enter appropriateidentification information into a login screen, such as a login name andpassword. Upon entering the appropriate identification information, thecustomer is automatically identified by the application 40.Alternatively, the customer's identification information may already beentered and stored such that when the application 40 is activated, thecustomer is already identified and can bypass the login screen.

Upon identifying the customer, the mobile computing device 22 (byinstructions from the application 40) displays a home screen on thedisplay screen 28 of the mobile device 22. As shown in FIG. 4, the homescreen may include a plurality of menu options with one of the menuoptions including Customer Purchase History 34. Upon selecting theCustomer Purchase History button (such as by touching the CustomerPurchase History utilizing the customer's finger), the application 40presents a summary of the customer's purchases on the display screen 28of the mobile computing device 22 as shown in FIG. 5. In an example, thesummary may include the date of the purchase, the name and location ofthe store where the purchase was made, the number of products or itemspurchased, and the total amount (in dollars) tendered or paid for thepurchase. In another example, the application 40 may present recentlycompleted purchases on the display screen 28, while all purchases can beviewed by selecting a “View All Transactions” button 36 on the screen.

In instances where the customer cannot locate a receipt for a particularproduct (e.g., the customer may have forgotten where the product waspurchased, the date the product was purchased, and/or the like), thecustomer can enter or input product identification information into theapplication 40 so that the application 40 can locate the receipt for thecustomer. Accordingly, and as previously mentioned, the method includesreceiving an input of product identification information from theproduct. In an embodiment, the input of product identificationinformation may be or include a universal product code of the product,and the universal product code may be embedded in a barcode displayeddirectly on the product or on a packaging of the product. In an example,the step of receiving the input of product identification informationincludes receiving the universal product code directly from the product.This may be accomplished by scanning the universal product codedisplayed on the product. For instance, and as shown in FIG. 5, theapplication 40 may include a “scan” button 38 displayed on the purchasehistory screen. Upon selecting the “scan” button 38, a barcode screenmay be presented to the customer which includes a barcode scanner 42, asshown in FIG. 6. The customer can scan the universal product code, whichmay be embedded in the barcode on the product or the packaging of theproduct, by holding the barcode scanner 42 adjacent the barcode on theproduct or packaging. When aligned with the barcode, the barcode scanner42 automatically scans the barcode on the product or packaging. Theapplication 40 can then decode the scanned barcode and obtain theuniversal product code of the product directly from the scanned barcode.

In an alternative example, the step of receiving the input of productidentification information may be accomplished by capturing an image ofthe universal product code utilizing the camera 30 of the mobilecomputing device 22 and receiving the universal product code from theimage captured by the camera 30. In this example, the universal productcode may be presented on the product or packaging by alpha and/ornumeric characters or embedded in a barcode. The application 40 couldinclude another button on the purchase history screen that the customercan select to activate the camera 30, and the customer can take theimage of the universal product code utilizing the activated camera 30.Alternatively, the customer could take an image of the universal productstore utilizing the camera 30, and store the image in the memory of themobile computing device 22. In this example, the application 40 couldinclude another button on the purchase history screen that the customercan select to upload the image stored in the memory of the mobilecomputing device 22. Upon obtaining the image taken by the camera 30,the application 40 can then obtain the universal product code of theproduct directly from the image.

In yet another example, the step of receiving the input of productidentification information may be accomplished by inputting theuniversal product code by keyword entry utilizing the user interface 29of the mobile computing device 22. In instances where the universalproduct code is presented on the product or packaging by alpha and/ornumeric characters, the customer can input the universal product codeinto the application 40 by selecting the “Type UPC Instead” button 44presented at the bottom of the screen shown in FIG. 6, and typing thecharacters utilizing a keypad of the user interface 29.

Upon receiving or obtaining the product identification information fromthe product or packaging, the method further includes transmitting(utilizing the communication network 24) the product identificationinformation to the server computer 14 of the business. Upon receivingthe transmission of the product identification information from themobile computing device 22, the processor of the server computer 14obtains at least one electronic receipt from a plurality of electronicreceipts stored in the customer purchase history in the database 16. Forexample, upon receiving the product identification information, theprocessor of the server computer 14 executes computer-executableinstructions causing the processor to select at least one of theplurality of electronic receipts from the customer purchase historystored in the database 16 that includes the listing of the productassociated with the product identification information. This may beaccomplished by the processor, for example, by comparing the universalproduct code or other identification information of the product obtainedfrom the mobile device 22 (from the application 40 resident on themobile computing device 22) with the universal product code or otheridentification information for each of the products listed on each ofthe electronic receipts stored in the customer purchase history. Theprocessor of the server computer 14 selects each receipt stored in thecustomer purchase history that includes a listing for a product havingthe same universal product code or other identification information asthe product that the customer would like to return. The server computer14 then transmits the selected receipt(s) to the mobile computing device22.

Upon receiving the selected receipt from the server computer 14, themethod further includes displaying the selected receipt on the displayscreen 28 of the mobile computing device 22. The selected receiptdisplayed on the display screen 28 may be a copy of a receipt that wasgenerated by the business or store when the purchase was made. Thereceipt displayed on the display screen 28 may also include a scannablebarcode. The customer can return the product by taking the product tothe business, or a store associated with the business, with theelectronic receipt displayed in the mobile computing device 22. Ininstances where the point-of-sale terminal at the business or storeincludes a barcode scanner, the clerk at the business or store can scanthe scannable barcode on the selected receipt to initiate a return ofthe product.

In another embodiment, after comparing the universal product code orother identification information of the product obtained from the mobilecomputing device 22 with that of each of the products set forth on eachof the electronic receipts stored in the customer purchase history, theprocessor of the server computer 14 may select more than one receiptincluding a listing for a product having the same universal product codeor other identification information as that of the product that thecustomer would like to return. In this embodiment, the processor of theserver computer 14 transmits all of the selected receipts to the mobilecomputing device 22. Upon receiving the selected receipts from theserver computer 14, as shown in FIG. 7 for example, the method includesdisplaying the selected receipts on the display screen 28 of the mobilecomputing device 22. The method further includes searching the selectedelectronic receipts to locate the listing of the product that thecustomer would like to return. In an example, the customer can search orscroll through the electronic receipts presented on the display screen28 of the mobile computing device 22, identify on the receipts thatincludes the listing of the product, and select one of the receipts bytouching or tapping the receipt presented on the screen 28. Uponselecting one of the receipts, and as shown in FIG. 8, the details ofthe receipt is presented on the display screen 28 including the productspurchased during that transaction, the amount paid for each of theproducts, the number of products purchased, the location of the storethat the purchase was made, and the date the purchase was made. Thereceipt presented on the display screen 28 also includes a scannablecode that can be scanned, by a point-of-sale terminal, to initiate areturn of the product.

It is to be appreciated that the several embodiments and/or examples ofthe system and method for locating a receipt for a product describedabove can be utilized for more than simply returning the product to alocal store. For instance, the system and method described above mayalso be used to locate a receipt in order to return the product by mail,to repurchase the product, and/or to check the warranty of the product.

Furthermore, several embodiments and/or examples of a system and methodfor locating a receipt for a product utilizes the application 40 loadedor resident on the mobile computing device 22. It is to be understoodthat the embodiments and/or examples of the method may alternatively beperformed utilizing any suitable computing device, which is notnecessarily mobile. For example, the method may be performed utilizing adesktop computer, a laptop computer, a netbook computer, and/or thelike. Other variations of the embodiments and/or examples of the methodunderstood by those skilled in the art which are not specificallymentioned above are also contemplated herein.

The above description of illustrated embodiments and examples of thepresent disclosure, including what is described in the Abstract, are notintended to be exhaustive or to be a limitation to the precise formsdisclosed. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the presentdisclosure are described herein for illustrative purposes, variousequivalent modifications are possible without departing from the broaderspirit and scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: one or more processors; andone or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computinginstructions configured to run on the one or more processors andperform: storing electronic receipts for a user in a database;receiving, from an electronic device of the user, product identificationinformation; searching the electronic receipts to identify two or moreof the electronic receipts listing a product referenced by the productidentification information; and facilitating a simultaneous display, onthe electronic device of the user, of each respective electronic receiptof the two or more of the electronic receipts, wherein the simultaneousdisplay of each respective electronic receipt comprises: (i) an overallview of the respective electronic receipt; and (ii) an individual itemview for the product listed in the respective electronic receipt.
 2. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein receiving, from the electronic device of theuser, further comprises: receiving, from an application on theelectronic device, the product identification information comprising auniversal product code as displayed on the product or a packaging of theproduct.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the application on theelectronic device is used to scan the universal product code asdisplayed on the product or the packaging of the product.
 4. The systemof claim 3, wherein: the electronic device comprises a camera configuredto capture an image of the universal product code; and the computinginstructions are further configured to run on the one or more processorsand perform: receiving, from the application on the electronic device,the image of the universal product code captured by the camera.
 5. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein receiving, from the electronic device of theuser, further comprises: receiving, via an application on a userinterface on the electronic device, at least transaction information forthe product in combination with the universal product code.
 6. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the computing instructions are furtherconfigured to run on the one or more processors and perform: receiving,via an application on the electronic device, at least transactioninformation for the product, as uploaded by the application from paperreceipts.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing instructionsare further configured to run on the one or more processors and perform:sending instructions to display a home screen on a user interface of theelectronic device, wherein the home screen comprises menu options withone or more menu options of the menu options comprising a summary ofpurchases of the user.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein each of theelectronic receipts further comprises a scannable code that is scannedby at least a point-of-sale terminal.
 9. The system of claim 8, whereinthe scannable code comprises a barcode.
 10. The system of claim 1,wherein the electronic receipts are from in-store purchases and onlinepurchases made by the user.
 11. A method comprising: storing electronicreceipts for a user in a database; receiving, from an electronic deviceof the user, product identification information; searching theelectronic receipts to identify two or more of the electronic receiptslisting a product referenced by the product identification information;and facilitating a simultaneous display, on the electronic device of theuser, of each respective electronic receipt of the two or more of theelectronic receipts, wherein the simultaneous display of each respectiveelectronic receipt comprises: (i) an overall view of the respectiveelectronic receipt; and (ii) an individual item view for the productlisted in the respective electronic receipt.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein receiving, from the electronic device of the user, furthercomprises: receiving, from an application on the electronic device, theproduct identification information comprising a universal product codeas displayed on the product or a packaging of the product.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the application on the electronic device isused to scan the universal product code as displayed on the product orthe packaging of the product.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein: theelectronic device comprises a camera configured to capture an image ofthe universal product code; and the computing instructions are furtherconfigured to run on the one or more processors and perform: receiving,from the application on the electronic device, the image of theuniversal product code captured by the camera.
 15. The method of claim11, wherein receiving, from the electronic device of the user, furthercomprises: receiving, via an application on a user interface on theelectronic device, at least transaction information for the product incombination with the universal product code.
 16. The method of claim 11,further comprising: receiving, via an application on the electronicdevice, at least transaction information for the product, as uploaded bythe application from paper receipts.
 17. The method of claim 11, furthercomprising: sending instructions to display a home screen on a userinterface of the electronic device, wherein the home screen comprisesmenu options with one or more menu options of the menu optionscomprising a summary of purchases of the user.
 18. The method of claim11, wherein each of the electronic receipts further comprises ascannable code that is scanned by at least a point-of-sale terminal. 19.The method of claim 18, wherein the scannable code comprises a barcode.20. The method of claim 11, wherein the electronic receipts are fromin-store purchases and online purchases made by the user.